'Bates Motel': Fresh teasers for Season 3

Family matters

While Season 2 spent a lot of time focusing on things happening in the town, Ehrin reports that Season 3 will put the spotlight back on the Bates family like never before.

"This season definitely kind of refocuses it with a closer lens on the family and on, specifically, the family dynamic and what's going on because there's a lot going on in that house psychologically," she says. "It's really about Norman's sinking into this disorder and Norma beginning to be unable to deny it."

Image: James Dittiger

Dylan's doubts

Speaking of family, this season will see Dylan very much filling his role as the "every man point of view," says Ehrin, and he will be calling out the weirdness between Norma and Normal in a way that make all parties uneasy.

"When you're inside that Norma/Norman bond, they don't see clearly. They don't have total understanding of what all the actions mean and all the interactions mean," she says. "For someone who's outside of that incredibly co-dependent relationship to be able to look in on it and go, 'Um, it's weird that you all are sleeping in the same bed,' it's really fascinating."

Fascinating but also unsettling for Norma.

"It sort of opens the curtains on it and it makes Norma really have to step back and look at it objectively, which is sometimes really hard to do when you're a mom and particularly when you're a single mom," she says.

Norman gets defensive

"For someone else, even family member, to be passing judgement on it is both in a way offensive to him and incredibly threatening to him," she says.

Dylan, don't poke the bear.

Image: James Dittiger

Norman's new job

As hinted in the preview, Normal is sporting a new title this year: Manager of Bates Motel.

This move, while deserved, is also a way for Norma to keep an eye on her son, Ehrin explains.

"It's actually a really fun storyline and it really comes out of Norma's desire to keep him close because she's constantly worried about him," she says. "She's his mother and she feels on some level that there's things about him that she's extremely concerned about."

Image: Dylan Coulter

An important guest star

Revolution alum Tracy Spiridakos appears in the new season as well in a guest role, playing a "mysterious" and "compelling" character who strikes up a friendship with Norman.

"There's a film noir vibe to her presence and storyline," says Ehrin. "She carries secrets with her, there's things that she's there to accomplish, but on the surface she's this incredibly charming young woman who bonds with Norman a bit."

Image: James Dittiger

New sets

Not much has changed about Bates Motel since we saw it last, but we will be seeing new parts of it this season, Ehrin says. Specifically, a bathroom.

"We've never had a bathroom in the Bates house," Ehrin says excitedly. "And we've always wanted to do scenes with Norma taking a bath and Norman walking in. So while it does not seem like a loaded set...we have some of our most amazing scenes in that bathroom this year."

Image: James Dittiger

Leaning into the history

In all, as indicated by the Psycho-esque photo above and a few others that were rolled out by A&E prior to the premiere, Season 3 will find the series reaching an important point in the storytelling, says Ehrin.

"I think that we are getting to a section of the storytelling that is not going to repeat the film in any way, but the series has a structure that came with the film," she says. "We all know where we're going, so I think we're getting to a point in the storytelling that's a little bit darker, a little bit even more screwed up, a little more bent and I think we're all kind of excited about that."

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